


Eternal, Infernal Wisdom

by Starlithorizon



Category: Cabin Pressure
Genre: Character Study, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-12-20
Updated: 2012-12-20
Packaged: 2017-11-21 16:50:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 462
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/599976
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Starlithorizon/pseuds/Starlithorizon
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Arthur is secretly brilliant, even if no one really notices.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Eternal, Infernal Wisdom

There is a strange little trick to Arthur Shappey that no one ever notices. At first glance, he is just a bumbling, overenthusiastic man who lives with his mum and made coffee. And, yes, he is all of those things. But he is, as most people are, so much more than that.

You see, Arthur Shappey is quite brilliant. Surprisingly so. He won't be winning a Nobel Prize in physics anytime soon, and he won't find the cure to the common cold, but that doesn't mean much. He is far cleverer than people ever notice, and if they do notice, he is never given the credit he deserves. He doesn't mind though—the credit hardly matters.

People almost never see the eternal, infernal wisdom of Arthur. It's like he's secretly brilliant, and the secret is one of the most poorly kept. People take one look at him and think that he's irrelevant, but then he goes and does something unwittingly brilliant, like knowing precisely what to say to a stranger when they've had a terrible day, or knowing just when someone needs a blanket or new cup of coffee. He's quite good at reading people.

That's not something he learned from his People-Reading Course in Ipswich. It's something he just _knows_.

He is the king of faith, the sultan of hope, the czar of trust, but never without cause. He does not act blindly. One looks at his relationship with his father should be enough to tell you that. But that's okay. What he lacks in terms of a kind father, he more than makes up in terms of kind male figures. Douglas is practically a second father, having been with the company almost from the start. He knew almost right away that his mum could trust Douglas.

He'd also known that Nigel, the previous captain, wouldn't be very good for the company. Shortly after his realization, his mum had to sack Nigel for his careless attitude toward flying. While Douglas was somehow less than stringent in procedure, and a little too fond of bad habits, he'd never been as _reckless_  as the previous pilot.

Arthur had also known that Martin would be perfect, with just a bit of coaxing.

Arthur might not be a genius, and he is perfectly aware of it. He is terrible with maths and science, but he is a surprisingly fast learner. He really just needs someone to show him the way once, and he'll be able to manage the path on his own.

Luckily for dear, wise Arthur Shappey, he has a whole new family of guides, full of love and kindness and more patience than he thinks he deserves.

But that one thing that always slips his notice is wrong.

Arthur will _always_ deserve it.

**Author's Note:**

> I might just spend my whole life writing stuff for Arthur, and I am entirely fine with that.


End file.
